January 22, 2010

Case in point: Cinnamon rolls. They're one of my favorite things for breakfast, if not the tippy-top dog (which should come as no surprise, since about 90% of my posts involve that enchanting, and soothing spice), but I rarely find the motivation to make them for myself.

Fortunately, I've found a local bakery that makes a sensational sampling. Each roll has just the right amount of flakiness, a wonderful balance of cinnamon and butter, and the perfect dose of sugary glaze. This discovery is dangerous, for the place is right down the road and very reasonably-priced...

Dang it. How can I resist?

Do you have a go-to cinnamon roll recipe? Better yet, one that requires little effort? Do tell! And while you're at it, what makes a cinnamon roll different from a cinnamon bun? I've always wondered.

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comments:

The recipe I used for cinnamon rolls was quite delightful, but I can't say they require little effort. On the bright side, you can make them the night before, leave them in the fridge, and then bake them first thing in the morning -- which, if you're like me, is a god-send, since I'm totally non-functional first thing.http://www.growcookeat.com/2009/02/inspiration-cinnamon.html

I'm embarrassed to say I've never made cinnamon rolls. But then, I've only started working with yeasted things in the past couple of years and I've stuck with bread because it's forgiving.

The recipe I've always wanted to try is Pioneer Woman's- they look sooo good. But for Christmas I got the KA flour whole grain baking book and there is a good recipe in there (by one of my favorite writers, Jodi Picoult which is kind of weird but I digress)and now I think that should be my first attempt...hey, I think I see a blog post in my future :)

Looks yummy! I bake cinnamon rolls with yeast that are labor intentsive,but also have quickies that satisfy the craving:) Use the can bisquits, quarter each one, dip in melted butter, then roll in a cinnamon-sugar mixture. Lay in a glass pan, and bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes. Drizzle with frosting (powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla) Or another option: Use crescents (from a can) roll out, press seams together, and spread with melted butter,sprinkle with white sugar and cinnamon, roll up and cut into small slices. Bake at 350 until light brown. Drizzle with same frosting as before. These are only good the same day you make them, not like the "real" ones that can be frozen. I wish you lived closer Grace, I would deliver my homemade ones to your door:)

Take puff pastry and roll it out on a parchment papper covered counter. Spread cinnamon-brown sugar pecans across puff pastry - leaving an inch from one long side. Roll puff pastry toward that long side.

Put the roll into fridge for about 30 minutes to firm up. Then cut into 2 -inch slices. place face down on parchment paper baking sheet.

Bake them in the preheated 375 degrees F oven for 30 minutes or until gold brown.

Let them cool about 10 minutes and drizzle with a loose royal icing (confectioners' sugar-and-milk)

Oooh these look good Grace. I tried making cinnamon rolls once - except they were called scrolls and contained raisins (which I left out). It was pretty tasty but unfortunately involved a bit of work - explains why I haven't made them since :) Good luck and do share if you find a super easy one.

We love these too but don't make them either cuz they are too much work in the morning. I have though taken the buttermilk bread recipe from ABin5 & made it into mini cinnamon rolls like Zoe showed on her blog. They were exactly the same but mighty tasty

I hate to admit this but I have never made cinnamon rolls. I think it is the fear of eating them all then wearing it! These look quite tasty...I think the gals at work need to sample them...it is time for me to venture out!

This recipe comes from Fine Cooking and has been receiving raves while floating around the internet recently. I was going to fix it over the holidays, but decided that we were in baked goodie overkill. http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/fastest-cinnamon-buns.aspx

They do look like the perfect roll. When I make cinnamon rolls, I use Pioneer Womans recipe because it makes 7 pan fulls and they freeze beautifully. I dont use her maple glaze however, I use a cream cheese frosting glaze or a simple confectioners sgar one.

We have a strange trend among our local bakeries' cinnamon rolls. Several bakeries are doing it now. They're not topping them with a white, sugary frosting. Instead, they sprinkle on more cinnamon sugar. Still delicious, but I sometimes miss the frosting.

gracie I am going to make some bacon-cinna rolls from scratch soon. put I'm lazy at times too, well, impatient is more the word and I have to admit those rolls at Starbucks weren't that bad. I dive right into the middle part and it was pretty damn good.

Wow, those rolls look fantastic, bakery-bought or not. Everyone deserves a little laziness now and then. And as for me, I have no idea the difference between a cinnamon roll and a cinnamon bun. Hope someone will enlighten me soon.

I usually make the Pioneer Woman's cinnamon roll recipe but heck, that takes about 3 1/2 hours!! :) We used to go to Great Harvest for a yummy cinnamon roll. Theirs is huge and flavorful! These cinnamon rolls look amazing, too.

I have no idea what makes a cinnamon bun different from a cinnamon roll. But roll always sounds plain while buns sound cute! hahaha, I love eating these layer by layer, each crusted with it's own sprinkle of cinnamony sugary goodness.

Mmmm those look good!!! I make my American grandma's recipe--they get smothered in so much cinnamon buttery goodness that you can't even tell that they're rolled up. I guess that's why we call them sticky buns! Her recipe is quite simple, but the America's Test Kitchen one also seems nice.

I use my mom's 1950's Betty Crocker recipe. I let them rise over night in the fridge and bake them fresh in the morning. The key to good cinnamon rolls is to eat them when they are fresh out of the oven. So you need to finish off that pan of rolls right away, no left overs!Mimi

Grace, I have an awesome recipe which I blogged about a couple of months ago and it involves no yeast. Is light and tender much like ones made with yeast. The dough is easy to work with and they don't take much longer than anything else to make and bake. I have since made several different yeast filled ones and my children always mention that one as being their favorite. I'd be happy to send you the link if you're interested.~ingrid

Hehe I'm lazy too! lol But yes the Nigella Lawson Norwegian cinnamon bun recipe is incredible but should come with a word of warning as it's freakishly good and you may find yourself downing 5 as I did :P http://www.notquitenigella.com/2008/03/19/nigella-lawson-norwegian-cinnamon-buns-from-how-to-be-a-domestic-goddess/

oooh that looks dangerous! I've only made cinnamon rolls once and they were good. not great but good. I did see a recipe somewhere (damn...where was that ) that allowed the dough to rest in the fridge over night so you don't have to get up at 3:00am to have fresh rolls for breakfast. And I have no idea what the difference it between the buns and rolls. Now i have to go find out. See what you've done? LOL

I have no idea the difference between a "bun" or a 'roll". I know they taste so wonderful. Honestly, if the place down the road sold good coffee too-I would be there every morning for a cinnamon roll or bun and I would be in heaven.

Um, tempting photos, hello!! Thank goodness I do not seek out the cinnamon roll because I would devour them, many of them! The smell of a freshly baked cinnamon roll is unlike any other. If I were to seek one out, first choice would be homemade. Second choice would come from the Blackmarket Bakery in Irvine, CA.

Grace if were only so that we could find a cinnamon roll recipe that didn't take all that much work,but they're sooooooo worth it! I make cinnamon rolls with a potato bread recipe, I use a cinnamon filling recipe from Carol and a cream cheese icing that just tops it of nicely. Now you've gone and made me hungry for them!

Oh man, for a second I thought you had a recipe for these! Where's your source?

The last batch I made I really liked, mainly because they were slathered in caramel goodness. The only down side is they're baked together in one pan, so it's more like pull-apart buns and they don't look like traditional rolls. Otherwise I'm not a big fan of cinnamon rolls - usually they're too big, dry, and not sweet enough for me. It's really the dryness that's offputting to me.

I have no idea about buns V. rolls. To me a bun doesn't really look like anything but a bun, and the roll is, well, roll shaped?

My dad makes them and they are amazing. My grandma's were excellent (mom's mom) and she was famous for them and needless to say she was miffed when she tried my dad's (and he is a not a cook). He deep fries them and they are TO DIE FOR.

I vote for having cinnamon rolls for dinner instead. In the morning, I'm just too bleary-eyed to be making yeasted dough, letting it rise, rolling the darn thing, cutting it, and arranging it in the pan. But in the afternoon, I'd be more than energized to do it. Anyone with me? Who likes cinnamon rolls for dinner instead? ;)